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Question

Direction : Consider the following for the two (02) items that follow :
Let $2x^2+2y^2 + 2z^2 + 3x + 3y+3z-6=0$ be a sphere.

What is the diameter of the sphere?

This question was previously asked in
NDA 2 2024 GAT Question Paper (01-Sep-2024)
The correct answer is
\(\frac{5\sqrt{3}}{2}\)

Sphere Equation Analysis

The question asks for the diameter of a sphere given its equation: \(2x^2+2y^2 + 2z^2 + 3x + 3y+3z-6=0\). To find the diameter, we first need to determine the sphere's radius using the standard equation of a sphere.

Standard Sphere Equation

The standard equation of a sphere with center \((a, b, c)\) and radius \(r\) is:

\((x-a)^2 + (y-b)^2 + (z-c)^2 = r^2\)

The diameter (\(D\)) of the sphere is twice the radius, so \(D = 2r\).

Converting the Given Sphere Equation

The given equation is \(2x^2+2y^2 + 2z^2 + 3x + 3y+3z-6=0\). We need to rearrange this into the standard form.

  1. Divide by the coefficient of squared terms: Since the coefficients of \(x^2\), \(y^2\), and \(z^2\) are all 2, we divide the entire equation by 2 to make these coefficients 1: \(x^2 + y^2 + z^2 + \frac{3}{2}x + \frac{3}{2}y + \frac{3}{2}z - 3 = 0\)
  2. Complete the square: We group the \(x\), \(y\), and \(z\) terms and complete the square for each. The general form for completing the square for \(t^2 + bt\) is \((t + \frac{b}{2})^2 - (\frac{b}{2})^2\).
    • For \(x\): \(x^2 + \frac{3}{2}x = (x + \frac{3}{4})^2 - (\frac{3}{4})^2 = (x + \frac{3}{4})^2 - \frac{9}{16}\)
    • For \(y\): \(y^2 + \frac{3}{2}y = (y + \frac{3}{4})^2 - (\frac{3}{4})^2 = (y + \frac{3}{4})^2 - \frac{9}{16}\)
    • For \(z\): \(z^2 + \frac{3}{2}z = (z + \frac{3}{4})^2 - (\frac{3}{4})^2 = (z + \frac{3}{4})^2 - \frac{9}{16}\)
  3. Substitute back and rearrange: Substitute these completed square forms back into the equation: \((x + \frac{3}{4})^2 - \frac{9}{16} + (y + \frac{3}{4})^2 - \frac{9}{16} + (z + \frac{3}{4})^2 - \frac{9}{16} - 3 = 0\) Now, move the constant terms to the right side of the equation: \((x + \frac{3}{4})^2 + (y + \frac{3}{4})^2 + (z + \frac{3}{4})^2 = 3 + \frac{9}{16} + \frac{9}{16} + \frac{9}{16}\)
  4. Simplify the right side: Combine the constant terms on the right side: \(3 + \frac{27}{16} = \frac{3 \times 16}{16} + \frac{27}{16} = \frac{48}{16} + \frac{27}{16} = \frac{75}{16}\)

The equation of the sphere in standard form is:

\((x + \frac{3}{4})^2 + (y + \frac{3}{4})^2 + (z + \frac{3}{4})^2 = \frac{75}{16}\)

Calculating Sphere Radius and Diameter

By comparing this standard form to \((x-a)^2 + (y-b)^2 + (z-c)^2 = r^2\), we can identify:

  • The center of the sphere is \((a, b, c) = (-\frac{3}{4}, -\frac{3}{4}, -\frac{3}{4})\).
  • The square of the radius is \(r^2 = \frac{75}{16}\).

Now, we find the radius \(r\):

\(r = \sqrt{\frac{75}{16}} = \frac{\sqrt{75}}{\sqrt{16}} = \frac{\sqrt{25 \times 3}}{4} = \frac{5\sqrt{3}}{4}\)

Finally, we calculate the diameter (\(D\)) of the sphere:

\(D = 2r = 2 \times \frac{5\sqrt{3}}{4}\) \(D = \frac{10\sqrt{3}}{4}\) \(D = \frac{5\sqrt{3}}{2}\)

Therefore, the diameter of the sphere is \(\frac{5\sqrt{3}}{2}\).

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Similar Questions

  1. If \((1, -1, 2)\) and \((2, 1, -1)\) are the end points of a diameter of a sphere \(x^2 + y^2 + z^2 + 2ux + 2vy + 2wz - 1 = 0\), then what is \(u + v + w\) equal to ?
  2. The centre of the sphere lies on the plane
  3. What is the radius of the sphere passing through origin and concentric with the sphere S ?
  4. What is the radius of \(S\)?
  5. On which one of the following planes does the centre of \(S\) lie?
  6. If the radius of the sphere S is 8 units, what is the value of k ?

Important Questions from Equation of Sphere

  1. If \((1, -1, 2)\) and \((2, 1, -1)\) are the end points of a diameter of a sphere \(x^2 + y^2 + z^2 + 2ux + 2vy + 2wz - 1 = 0\), then what is \(u + v + w\) equal to ?
  2. The centre of the sphere lies on the plane
  3. What is the radius of the sphere passing through origin and concentric with the sphere S ?
  4. What is the radius of \(S\)?
  5. On which one of the following planes does the centre of \(S\) lie?
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